More services needed to keep people experiencing homelessness warm: Advocate
Posted Jan 20, 2025 11:30:50 AM.
Last Updated Jan 20, 2025 03:26:21 PM.
As temperatures plummet across Waterloo Region, a growing number of people experiencing homelessness are looking for a place to get warm and stay warm.
An overnight warming centre opened in Kitchener on Friday on Lawrence Avenue in response to the cold temperatures, operating daily from 7:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
The Region of Waterloo also announced Monday that it is partnering with Porchlight Counselling and Addiction Services to open an overnight warming centre at Wesley United Church in Cambridge, although details like an opening date are still being finalized.
Regan Brusse, a local anti-poverty advocate, is commending the Region of Waterloo on the opening of the warming centre in Kitchener, but calling for more support in response to an emergency situation.
“At 20 spaces available within this facility, as grateful as I am, 20 spaces is not going to supply enough support to manage the volume and need that we’re facing.”
The latest data from Region of Waterloo Housing Services indicates that more than 2,300 people in the area are experiencing homelessness.
“Enact some of our emergency response mechanisms and make use of the busses like we do when there’s a fire, to keep people warm,” said Brusse.
This week, temperatures with wind chill are expected to drop to as low as -30 C. According to weather specialists, when skin is exposed to those cold winds, it can take just 10 minutes to develop frostbite or frostnip.
